Fire hits Worcester apartment house

WORCESTER — Firefighters battled a three-alarm fire in a multifamily apartment building Thursday that left 15 people and their pets without permanent shelter.

The blaze at 41-43 Bowdoin St. was reported about 3 p.m. There were no reports of injuries from the fire. Officials said preliminary investigation indicated it started on a second-floor exterior porch. Both the second- and third-floor outside walls appeared badly charred, with damage extending into the building.

An adjacent house, at 40 William St., was slightly damaged when flames from Bowdoin Street ignited a back porch. The fire was quickly put out.

Many of the residents, along with their pets, waiting in the cold Thursday evening to speak with American Red Cross volunteers who arrived to help. Some residents had their caged pets, including a parakeet, dogs and cats, they had rescued from the fire.

Several residents praised a police detective who they said went through the building knocking on doors and warning tenants who were unaware of the fire to get out of the building. They said smoke detectors had not sounded before they evacuated.

“I heard someone yelling in the hallway, ‘There is a fire!’ ” said John Hickson, a third-floor resident who shares a third-floor apartment with his 18-year-old son, Kevin. A musician, John Hickson recovered several guitars from the building, and Kevin grabbed his Playstation on the way out.

Sam Hickson, John’s brother, who rushed to the scene upon hearing about the fire on the radio, said he went looking for the detective who warned his brother and nephew about the fire.

“I just wanted to thank him. I want him to know how appreciative we are," he said. “These people are heroes. They don’t stick around for the cameras and all that.”

John Hickson said the fire was intense, and flames shot above the roofline of the three-story, six-unit building. “With the wind, it just lit up,” he said.

Firefighters remained in the neighborhood for more than three hours, with the last crews leaving about 6:30 p.m.

Deputy Fire Chief Geoffrey Gardell said the origin and cause of the fire remain under investigation.